日常物品開封時に必要な母指圧力に関する研究

　Detailed guidance for rehabilitation patients in their daily activities can be provided by determining the thumb pressure required to effectively utilize daily commodities. In order to clarify the necessary pressure for opening the lid of food containers and packages, we targeted 20 healthy persons and 85 patients with a distal radius fracture to determine the thumb pressure required for opening four types of daily commodities using a small pressure sensor and examined the relationship with normal evaluated muscle pressure. For the containers of goods, we used two types of cup-type containers, a bag-type container, and a plastic bottle, and the four types of commodities were pudding, jelly, snacks, and plastic bottles. The results revealed that the less pressure required for opening in the following order : pudding, snacks, jelly, and plastic bottles. Furthermore, for patients with distal radius fractures, we analyzed the relationship with the capability of opening commodities and examined the cut-off value. As a result, the pressure indicated by the small sensor showed high sensitivity and specificity in the following order : pudding at 0.25 Mpa, snacks at 0.41 Mpa, jelly at 0.48 Mpa, and plastic bottles at 0.54 Mpa, with grip pressure revealing high discrimination accuracy in jelly at 14.5 kg and plastic bottles at 19.5 kg. The results of this study lead us to conclude that the opening of commodities is closely related to the pressure indicated in the small sensor and the grip pressure on the injured side and this is a useful indicator for implementing rehabilitation in the upper arms. 食料品の容器の蓋や袋の開封に必要なつまみ力を明らかにするために、健常者２０例と、 橈骨遠位端骨折患者８５例を対象に小型圧力センサーを用いて、４種類の日常物品開封時に 必要な力を明らかにし、通常評価している筋力との関連性について検討した。物品の容器 は、カップ型２種類と袋型、ペットボトルを用いて、プリン、ゼリー、お菓子、ペットボ トルの４種類とした。結果は、プリン、スナック菓子、ゼリー、ペットボトルの順で開封 に必要な圧力が増加することがわかった。また、橈骨遠位端骨折患者を対象に、物品の開 封可否との関連性について分析し、カットオフ値を検討した。その結果は、小型センサー 力は、プリン０.２５ Mpa、スナック菓子０.４１ Mpa、ゼリー０.４８ Mpa、ペットボトル０.５４ Mpa で感度、特異度が高く、さらに握力は、ゼリー１４.５ kg、ペットボトル１９.５ kgで高い判別精 度を示していた。今回の研究結果により、物品の開封には、小型センサー力や受傷側握力 との間に密接な関連性をみとめ、上肢のリハビリテーションを進めていく上での有用な指 標であると考えられた

Mg/O₂ Battery Based on the Magnesium-Aluminum Chloride Complex (MACC) Electrolyte

Mg/O₂ cells employing a MgCl₂/AlCl₃/DME (MACC/DME) electrolyte are cycled and compared to cells with modified Grignard electrolytes, showing that performance of magnesium/oxygen batteries depends strongly on electrolyte composition. Discharge capacity is far greater for MACC/DME-based cells, while rechargeability in these systems is severely limited. The Mg/O₂-MACC/DME discharge product comprises a mixture of Mg­(ClO₄)₂ and MgCl₂, with the latter likely formed from slow decomposition of the former. The presence of Cl in these compounds suggests that the electrolyte participates in the cell reaction or reacts readily with the initial electrochemical products. A rate study suggests that O₂ diffusion in the electrolyte limits discharge capacities at higher currents. Formation of an insulating product film on the positive electrodes of Mg/O₂-MACC/DME cells following deep discharge increases cell impedance substantially and likely explains the poor rechargeability. An additional impedance rise consistent with film formation on the Mg negative electrode suggests the presence of detrimental O₂ crossover. Minimizing O₂ crossover and bypassing charge transfer through the discharge product would improve battery performance

Impact of Statin Therapy on Plaque Characteristics as Assessed by Serial OCT, Grayscale and Integrated Backscatter–IVUS

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of statin treatment on coronary plaque composition and morphology by optical coherence tomography (OCT), grayscale and integrated backscatter (IB) intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging.BackgroundAlthough previous studies have demonstrated that statins substantially improve cardiac mortality, their precise effect on the lipid content and fibrous cap thickness of atherosclerotic coronary lesions is less clear. While IVUS lacks the spatial resolution to accurately assess fibrous cap thickness, OCT lacks the penetration of IVUS. We used a combination of OCT, grayscale and IB-IVUS to comprehensively assess the impact of pitavastatin on plaque characteristics.MethodsProspective serial OCT, grayscale and IB-IVUS of nontarget lesions was performed in 42 stable angina patients undergoing elective coronary intervention. Of these, 26 received 4 mg pitavastatin after the baseline study; 16 subjects who refused statin treatment were followed with dietary modification alone. Follow-up imaging was performed after a median interval of 9 months.ResultsGrayscale IVUS revealed that in the statin-treated patients, percent plaque volume index was significantly reduced over time (48.5 ± 10.4%, 42.0 ± 11.1%; p = 0.033), whereas no change was observed in the diet-only patients (48.7 ± 10.4%, 50.4 ± 11.8%; p = NS). IB-IVUS identified significant reductions in the percentage lipid volume index over time (34.9 ± 12.2%, 28.2 ± 7.5%; p = 0.020); no change was observed in the diet-treated group (31.0 ± 10.7%, 33.8 ± 12.4%; p = NS). While OCT demonstrated a significant increase in fibrous cap thickness (140 ± 42 μm, 189 ± 46 μm; p = 0.001), such changes were not observed in the diet-only group (140 ± 35 μm, 142 ± 36 μm; p = NS). Differences in the changes in the percentage lipid volume index (−6.8 ± 8.0% vs. 2.8 ± 9.9%, p = 0.031) and fibrous cap thickness (52 ± 32 μm vs. 2 ± 22 μm, p < 0.001) over time between the pitavastatin and diet groups were highly significant.ConclusionsStatin treatment induces favorable plaque morphologic changes with an increase in fibrous cap thickness, and decreases in both percentage plaque and lipid volume indexes

Experiences of Disabled Older Adults in Tokyo&rsquo;s Adult Day Care Centers during COVID-19&mdash;A Case Study

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in social isolation among elderly people with disabilities. Adult daycare (ADC) is an important community care option for socialization among people with disabilities. However, their experiences with ADC remain underexplored. Thus, this study investigated the experiences of community-dwelling disabled elderly with ADC from the perspective of socialization. Four older women from Tokyo with disabilities, availing of one ADC service, were interviewed across two sessions between November 2020 and January 2021. The transcribed interviews and field notes were analyzed qualitatively. This yielded eight categories: two pertaining to context (&ldquo;restricted social interaction outside of ADC&rdquo;, &ldquo;feeling simultaneously grateful and ashamed of oneself as a recipient of care services&rdquo;), and six pertaining to experience with ADC (&ldquo;take a catastrophic defensive posture in situations where one&rsquo;s perception of value is shaken&rdquo;, &ldquo;express oneself positively to justify one&rsquo;s daily life&rdquo;, &ldquo;have trouble knowing what to do&rdquo;, &ldquo;put oneself in a shaded exchange relationship&rdquo;, &ldquo;examine the value of elderly people in need of care in society&rdquo;, and &ldquo;savor regular contact with others&rdquo;). Ensuring the use of ADC as a safe place for interaction while considering pandemic-related needs is important to develop policy and practical responses to restricted socialization during COVID-19